University can be an overwhelming or daunting experience during your first few weeks, which naturally fades as you settle in. I wanted to leave my mark and a legacy; I founded the University's first Hindu Society, which was affiliated to the National Hindu Students Forum (NHSF) (UK), meaning I was getting to know students with a similar mindset from across the breadth of the UK. I remained president for two years, before I went on to do my placement with NHSF (UK), giving me the opportunity to influence other students as I travelled across the UK working for the organisation. I made some wonderful friends during my time at University, some of whom I still keep in touch with now. The memories you create are everlasting, and with friends came the social element. The Students' Union was refurbished, the library was redeveloped and with a huge investment in facilities came internal growth with students at the forefront. A memory I will never forget is getting caught leaving the library and told off by a senior lecturer when I missed one of his lectures, even though I was in the library completing an assignment (I obviously didn't time that right!). He then went on to be one of my colleagues as I worked as a student adviser after I graduated, within the same department I was a student in. That is when I really learnt how much the University and staff invest in their students.

At the time, the University was one of a very few which did the course I selected and the only one which did a placement year, this is what made it stand out compared to other universities. It is probably now a more common course, but with the knowledge and experience of lecturers who came from industry, it is still probably very unique to the University. My university experience benefited my interpersonal skills, which in turn led me to apply to be a special constable, a volunteer police officer with all the same uniform and powers as a full-time officer; my friends would be going out on a Friday night out, whilst I was policing the streets and keeping them safe. Although I had no intention of joining the police service, this was a nice stepping stone in to the working world. The skills gained from my course developed my understanding of managing events, I used this to my advantage when I organised national sports competitions, religious and cultural events for NHSF (UK), which had attendances from 800-5,000 people as well as networking, celebratory, conferences and other events within the police.

The great thing about the police service is that there are so many different roles and no two days are the same. I have worked on neighbourhood teams, tackling long term problems to response, where I have been in a fast-paced environment responding to 999 calls. The biggest responsibility given to me is helping those in need, and there is no better satisfaction than knowing you have helped someone in their time of need, such as doing CPR on a stranger and seeing them breathe again, catching a burglar in the act, or even sitting and talking to a vulnerable elderly person. I am currently on a project team working with young people under 25 in order to tackle and reduce youth violence, robberies and knife crime. I have something that resonates with a majority young people who I deal with, whether it is victims or suspects; I grew up in an inner city area, came from a deprived background and had adverse childhood experiences. I was able to change that through my educational career, now I stand proud and tall with positive experiences with a view of helping others. As my career goes on, I look to develop myself laterally and up the latter. With the Commonwealth Games 2022 taking place in the West Midlands, my university course will give me the ability to share what I learnt with planning teams within the Police, with a view of developing best practices.

From winning awards, saving lives, to making a difference within communities.

Education opens up your future to being a future leader. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Enjoy social and extra-curricular activities but when it comes to learning, be like a sponge; soak all the learning in and develop your niche. The skills you attain is what will make you excel at your job, whatever you do, engage with your learning experience so you're not just turning up enough to pass.